A popular Fianna Fáil councillor who collapsed and died suddenly while on a general election canvass was a "gentle, honest soul" who was too good for politics, mourners at his funeral have been told.

Limerick City Councillor Joe Crowley (54) died suddenly on Monday while out canvassing in Co Limerick for his long-time political colleague and friend Willie O'Dea.

Addressing the large crowd of mourners who gathered at Our Lady of Rosary Church in Limerick yesterday, Cllr Crowley's brother Colm paid tribute to the well-known northside public representative.

"Joe was a pacifist. He sought to diffuse, he sought to reconcile and to conciliate. He was a loyal friend, he was open in heart and home to his community to the point that there was no more to give. He loved representing Fianna Fáil," said Mr Crowley.

Mourners were told how when he was a child an uncle priest once told Joe's mother that he would grow up to be "a bishop or a gangster".